Hotfoot Maintenance by Mike Tremont

Just wanted to share an experience I had out on the water that I didn’texpect. I’m big on preventive maintenance, but this experience may help you stay out on the water longer.

The throttle started sticking as I was motoring. It progressed to minor annoyance to a serious problem quickly. I had replaced my throttle cable a year prior, but I had just had some work done at a shop which left a few things detached. These were my thoughts as I was trying to troubleshoot the problem. At this point the pedal was stuck in the idle position. After looking under the cowl and inspecting what I could on and around the pedal, I was stumped. Called it an early day and idled a few miles back to the ramp.

Below are some pics of what I found wrong. The pin that floats between the pedal and pivot that attaches to the cable had seized up.

The bolt at the lower arrow was the entire problem. I applied a small amount of marine grease there and everywhere else there is an arrow on the next 2 pics.

Amazing what a little grease can do. So if you’re having to to push a little harder on that Hot Foot than usual, take a few minutes now. It may keep you out on the water a little longer next time out.